Rachel Bess' work is very gothic and fairytale-like and drew me in immediately. The way she paints, realistic yet still very much like a painting, reminded me a lot of Kris Lewis, but a somewhat darker version.
Most of her paintings are portraits and all of them women, a lot of whom look like burlesque dancers.
Insects and other scientific objects seem to be a frequent theme. Sometimes they are in the background and sometimes they seem to play a bigger role in the piece.
Artists, or anyone really, always score bonus points with me when they like owls. Rachel Bess does seem to be a fan. And seeing I love silhouettes too, she really is in it to win it.
I really like how some of her portraits are so much like ancient icons. I've been drying to try that myself. Maybe I could try it soon, it seems like the perfect project for autumn.
What I probably find most interesting about it is that even though her works are pretty dark, the subjects are always illuminated very well. And you know how much I love contradictions like that...
wow. these are so surreal...the lighting looks so realistic its almost scary. hah
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